Variable connector



Oct. 17, 1967 H. T. CARTER VARIABLE CONNECTOR Filed Aug. 25, 1965 United States Patent Ofiice 3,347,573 Patented Oct. 17, 1967 3,347,573 VARIABLE CONNECTOR Harry T. Carter, Chanute, Kans. 66720 Filed Aug. 25, 1965, Ser. No. 482,396 1 Claim. (Cl. 28714) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A multi-purpose connector which provides a first set of fixation alternatives thereby allowing a working head such as mops or other household appliances to be locked at either two right-angle positions relative to the center line of the supporting member as well as directly in line with the supporting member, or in a second set of more variable alternatives, the connector may be frictionally secured so that the attachment of the clamp element of the connector may be moved to and positioned at any desired location within a 180 arc relative to the supporting membet or handle. A locking flange and clamp bolt combina tion may be adjusted to cause the flange member to engage portions of the supporting member, thereby facilitating the right-angle and center line positions. Alternatively, the clamp bolt is adjustable to allow the flange member to be rotated to preclude any flange engagement and to lock the clamp element within said 180 arc.

Prior to the instant invention, connectors of various types have been employed with mops and other household appliances. In most common forms, typically, the

particular appliance, whether a mop head, can opener or the like, would be rigidly and immovably aflixed to a handle or some other supporting means. In very many cases, however, a single position for the working head of the apparatus being utilized was not suificient to optimally accomplish all the intended purposes of the apparatus. An example of such may immediately be seen when it becomes desirable to change the position of a mop handle relative to the mop head in order to facilitate reaching hard-to-get-at portions of a floor as between or around desks. A fixed or immovable connector or mounting bracket may also be a handicap in such common household appliances as a wall mounted can opener. Here it is frequently desirable to be able to remove the appliance from sight or out of the way without disconnecting it from its mounting bracket, such as swiveling the device to the underside of a cabinet.

The instant invention is directed to the alleviation of these various problems by providing an extremely adaptable connector capable of being utilized with many and varied types of household or machine shop apparatus in almost innumerable ways. More specifically, our connector provides a first set of fixation alternatives allowing the working head to be locked at either of two right-angle positions relative to the longitudinal center line of the supporting member as well as directly in line with the supporting member, or in a second set of more variable alternatives, it may be frictionally secured so the attachment or clamp element of the connector may be moved to and positioned at any desired location within a 180 are relative to the supporting member or handle.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a new, improved and inexpensive connecting positioning and mounting device for use with various types of appliances and tools.

A further object of the invention is to provide connector means suitable for use with various types of household and machine shop apparatus which permit varieties of alternative positions, both frictionally held and rigidly lockable.

A more specific object of the invention is to provide such a means which, in one set of selectable options, allows the working member of a variety of tools to be locked in line with its supporting member or, at right angles on either side relative to the center line of said supporting member.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a connector which, in a second set of options, may be utilized to frictionally lock the working member in any desired position in a are relative to one end of the supporting member or handle of said connector.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a device as described of extraordinarily simple construction, great strength, durability and dependability wherein the shift from the frictional type of engagement to the rigid, locking type, is easily and quickly accomplished by the user without necessitating detachment of the appliance from the connector or the connector from its handle or the like.

Other and further objects of the invention will appear in the course of the following description thereof.

In the accompanying drawing, which forms a part of the instant specification and is to be read in conjunction therewith, an embodiment of the invention is shown and, in the various views, like numerals are employed to indicate like parts.

FIG. 1 is a side-elevational view of a multi-position connector for a mop head incorporating the inventive structure set for in-line fixed alignment of mop head, handle and connector.

FIG. 2 is a View taken along the line 22 of FIG. 1 in the direction of the arrows.

FIG. 3 is a side-sectional view taken through the center line of the device of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a top plan view of the device of FIG. 1 still utilizing the rigid (as opposed to frictional) type of engagement, the connector, however, shifted to a right-angle orientation.

FIG. 5 is a top plan view of the device of FIG. 1, the type of use shifted to the frictional type of engagement illustrated as being angled some 45 from the handle center line.

FIG. 6 is a perspective view from above of the handle engaging element of the connector as used in FIG. 1 detailing and showing the bolt opening for the pivotal engagement, as well as the means and structure necessary for the three-position rigid engagement option.

Referring now more particularly to the accompanying drawing, therein is shown the subject improvement, which is here shown and described as a mop head-handle connector. The handle engaging member or supporting member of the connector is best seen in FIG. 6 and is generally designatedby numeral 10. One end of supporting member 10 is typically tubular in shape and hollow for the purpose of receiving therewithin a conventional mop stick 12. Tubular portion 11 of supporting member 10 may very well be, as an alternative thereto, a wall bracket or bench or table mounting adapted to support something other than a mop head.

The other end 13 of supporting member 10 is formed as a flat, partially rectangular and partially beveled and rounded bearing piece or plate. To form piece 13, one end of tubular member 11 may be impressed flat, thereby forming a rectangular slab or plate having initially straight and parallel edges 14 and 14a. Edges 14 and 14a are beveled inwardly as at 15 and 15a equidistant from the base line 13a of plate 13, thereafter extending nearly parallel again for an interval. Leading edge 16 is rounded off for a purpose to be described.

Plate 13 further includes rectangular slot 17 located Within the area defined by edges 14 and 14a, said slot 3 centered on plate 13 and extending at right angles to longitudinal center line 18 of supporting member 10. Directly in line with slot 17 and also centered on line 18 is circular hole 19 located forwardly of slot 17 and between the beveled edge portions and 15a.

Clamp member 20 receives the leading end of plate 13 between the two rearwardly extending jaw or leg portions thereof, 21 and 22. Clamp member 20 mayprofitably be made from an elongate flat piece of metal bent or formed in 'U-shape in transverse section or side view as in FIGS. 1 and 3. Legs 21 and 22 are crimped together as at 23 adjacent the closed .V whereby to form at one end of clamp member 20 a tubular sleeve 24. adapted in the particular structure shown to. receive the wire support ring member 25 of a conventional mop head 25a.

Legs .21 and 22 of clamp 20 are exactly equal in area and outline in that both have straight, parallel side edges 26 and 26a, respectively and rounded forward edges 27 and 27a, respectively. Leg 21 has circular raised portion 28 centrally thereof, the latter penetrated by square opening 29 located centrally therein. Leg 22 has circular opening 30 therethrough axially aligned with square opening 29 and of lesser diameter than same, but suificient to receive the threaded end of bolt 31' therethrough for connecting purposes to be discussed below. Leg 22 further has therethrough rectangular slots 32 and 33, the latter spaced equal distances from circular hole 30 on opposite sides thereof along the central axis of member 20.

Legs 21 and 22, as best seen in FIGS. 1-3, inclusive, fit against the upper and lower sides of plate 13 and may be tightened toward one another whereby to frictionally engage the flat upper and lower surfaces thereof. When it is desired that clamp 20 be mounted on plate 13,-the operator fits legs 21 and 22 thereof below and above the lower and upper surface of plate 13 and align same with respect to plate 13 until openings 29 and 30 in legs 21 and 22, respectively, are in line with opening 19 in plate 13. Bolt 31 may then be inserted through these aligned openings whereby the square shoulder 31a thereof is engaged by the square sides of opening 29, thereby preventing bolt 31 from turning within said openings. To com-l plete the operative assembly, an elongate, preferably rectangular clip, member, piece or flange is additionally received on the shaft of bolt 31. Thereafter, wing nut 34 is threadably engaged with the threaded free end of bolt 31 and operates thereafter, as same is loosened and tightened upon said bolt to effect and permit the variety of engagement and positions to be described. If the desired positions of the mop head are in a straight line with respect to longitudinal center line 18 of supporting member 11, then locking flange 35, with bent end 35a positioned so as to protrude simultaneously through rectangular slot 32 and into rectangular slot 17, may be then tightened down by Wing nut 34 on bolt 31 thereby to secure flange 35 in a fixed position and grip. the elements of the connector fixedly together. Since locking flange 35 is generally rectangular in shape, its bent end 35a protrudes through both slots 32 and 17, the straightsides of 35a abutting against the interior of slot 17, thereby precluding the clamp from being turned away from its intended longitudinal position.

When it is desired that clamp 20, and thusly the mop head, be locked at a right-angle relative to center line 18 (on either side) wing nut 34 is loosened, allowing locking flange 35 and protruding end 35a thereof to become disengaged from slot 17 so that the entire clamp may be rotated 90, whereupon bent end 35a, which still protrudes through hole 32, upon tightening of the wing nut 34 again, moves past and thereafter engages one of the beveled sides 15 or 15a. This action provides and permits an alternative pair of rigid and locked positions at right angles to center line 18, one of which is seen in FIG. 4. FIG. 4 shows only one such right-angle position and it is understood that clamp 20, upon loosening lock nut 34, may similarly be rotated 180 whereby end 35a will engage the other beveled side 15a. Thus when locking flange 35 is so positioned as to allow protruding end 35a to protrude through slot 32, there are three positions at which the working head, e.g., the mop, may be located relative to the mop stick and as such will remain firmly and rigidly engaged.

A second set of options would allow wing nut 34 to function in concert with bolt 31 and particularly the opposed enlarged head thereof as the sole locking means frictionally causing legs 21 and 22 to engage fiat plate 13 in such a manner that the mop head may be located at any desired position within a 180 are relative to line 18. As seen in FIG. 5, in order to permit engagements of this second type, wing nut 34 is sufficiently backed off that locking flange 35 may be rotated whereby end 35a of flange 35 is inserted into and protrudes through rectangular slot 33. The distance. from opening 19 to the forward edge 16 of mounting section 13 is such that when the flange 35 is positioned with end 35a thereof fitting within slot 33, end 35a is free of both forward edge 19 and beveled sides 15 or 15a in rotation of clamp. 20 on end 13 of member 10. When locking flange 35 is in this,

position, wing nut 34 may be tightened down at any angular position from in line with line 18 to on either side thereof. The bolt and nut structure afford the only securing means so that the mop head, and clamp 20, are

freely rotatable anywhere within the previously mentioned arc unless the nut and bolt assembly are tightened to clamp the legs 21 and 22 on plate 13. Elongated openlugs 36 in locking flange 35 facilitateand permit the loosening and rotating of flange 35 so the end 35a thereof may alternatively engage slots 32 and 33. Furthermore, legs 21 and22 are not normally perfectly parallel but rather tend to diverge toward the ends 27 thereof. This allows clamp 20 to be more easily rotated when wing nut 34 is loosened as legs 21 and 22 are no longer forcibly frictionally engaging plate 13..

From the foregoing it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to attain all of the ends and objects hereinabove set forth together i with other advantages which are obvious and which are inherent to the structure.

It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations. This is contemplated by and is within the scope of the claim..

As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanyingdrawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

A multi-position connector comprising,

a supporting member having a rectangular slot and a bolt opening in. an engaging portion thereof,

said engaging portion having first and second recessed side edge portions,

a clamp having a pair of substantially flat legs adapted to receive therebetween the engaging portion in sliding frictional engagement,

said clam-p having a bolt opening through each leg alignable with the bolt opening in the engaging portion,

one leg of said clamp having also a second and a third rectangular slot located on opposite sides of said bolt opening,

a locking flange having an elongate bolt opening therethrough alignable over said other bolt openings,

said flange also having one end extending at 90 to the body thereof engageable and disengageable with one rectangular slot in said clamp leg,

the third rectangular slot positioned outwardly of said recessed edge portions when said bolt openings are aligned, so as to preclude engagement between the 5 6 angle-d end of said locking flange and said engaging References Cited a fla g ng bolt engagin th ali ned bolt openings to UNITED STATES PATENTS 1 0 e O releasably frictionally secure tie said engaging por- 1,1645 38 12/1915 Madden 287*14 tion, said clamp legs and the locking flange at any 5 3,031,707 5/1962 Wlley et 30611 desired position within a 90 are On either side of l I the longitudinal center line of said supporting mem- CARL TOMLIN Emmme' ber. W. L. SHEDD, Assistant Examiner. 

